The run that DJ Mustard had from 2011 to 2014 is insane. From Tyga's "Rack City" to Omarion's "Post To Be," it seems like virtually every song played on the radio and in clubs was made by DJ Mustard. His most impressive year was undoubtedly 2014. Check his resume: Rick Ross' "Sanctified" featuring Big Sean and Kanye West; Kid Ink's "Main Chick" featuring Chris Brown; YG's "Who Do You Love?" featuring Drake; Ty Dolla $ign's "Or Nah" featuring Wiz Khalifa and The Weeknd; T.I. 's "No Mediocre" featuring Iggy Azalea. And that's just naming a few. There's plenty more that went through his Fruity Loops.

Mustard, born Dijon Isaiah McFarlane, also served as the executive producer of YG's critically acclaimed debut studio album My Krazy Life, an project many believed was snubbed for a Grammy nod. The 25-year-old DJ was on top of the world until things started to unravel during December of 2014. Mustard and his right hand YG got into a nasty Instagram beef that turned physical. They would eventually squash things up within a week. However, the punch to the gut happened that same month when childhood friend Mike Free filed a lawsuit against Mustard, claiming he wasn't properly credited or compensated for his contributions to 20 of Mustard's biggest hits. Five of the 20 songs named in the suit include "Banjo," "Nothin' Like Me," "Thuggin'," "Be Real" and "It Ain't You."

When 2015 arrived  it felt like Mustard took a step back. The radio hits were there (Kid Ink's "Be Real" featuring DeJ Loaf, Nelly's "The Fix" featuring Jeremih) but they weren't as plentiful as the previous years. From the outside looking in, it felt like Mustard wanted to escape the spotlight. But after a year being behind-the-scenes the West Coast beatmaker is looking to take 2016 by storm. He's already touring and performing at festivals as a solo act, he started a record label called 10 Summers and released a banger with Travi$ Scott titled "Whole Lotta Lovin'" last month.

XXL got Mustard on the phone to talk about how stressful 2015 was, why he purposely stepped out of the spotlight, signing Ella Mai to 10 Summers and his relationship with YG and Ty Dolla $ign.

XXL: Walk me through the beat construct of “Whole Lotta Lovin’.” That song is fantastic.

DJ Mustard: I used Fruity Loops for my part, it was other producers involved. I’m not sure about what they used. Probably like Logic. When we worked on it, most of it was on Fruity Loops though, almost 70 percent of the song. So we got it, we didn’t have a drop, didn’t have any vocal chops, we just went and took our time on it. Really got the vocal chops right, drop right and the signature sounds that’s in the verse, I got that right. Once we did that it was kind of a wrap.

What was the vibe in the studio? The song sounds so fun I can only imagine the studio was very lively.

It was more so putting it together and making it make sense and not corny. That was my main thing when I was working with Travi$. I had to find someone who was willing to make the leap with me and doing an EDM record and not having no one involved in the EDM world doing it. Once we got it together, we was like this feels good and we ran with it.

Watch DJ Mustard's "Whole Lotta Lovin'" Video Feat. Travi$ Scott

I remember when you started performing as a solo artist around 2014. Tell me how you progressed from your beginnings till now.

The difference in now is I’m more into the music and not for the money. I actually care about my shows. I mean I always care but I was used to going to DJ for like a club like Greystone [Manor] or something like that. Now that’s not the case. Now it’s like a movie, it’s an experience. It’s not that I wasn’t caring before, it just the focus was more just to get money. So it’s all about the music which its supposed to be.

Yeah, you’re doing like Coachella now, man. How do you prepare for that?

I'mma do me, I'mma turn up, I'mma do the unexpected.

Was being a solo act something you had planned?

Hell no. I thought I was going to be YG’s DJ forever. I didn’t plan on producing; I just picked up producing and got good at it. I was a DJ, I knew what people wanted to hear in the club. As an artist, I know what people want to hear, let me do my own record, let me do my own album and give people what I think is a hit. I’m beat driven; I’m driving the beat and [YG or Ty] is driving the lyrics. With my album I want to do different artists. I never thought I would be DJing like this. That wasn’t even the goal; I thought I was going to be a type mixtape DJ like DJ Drama. I just didn’t plan on being who I am so I’m grateful for everything.

Last year felt like you took a step back from the spotlight purposely. Why is that?

That was definitely on purpose, more so because I had a lot going on; just typical shit that happens when you’re successful. So then I took off. Of course I’m going to always do my original stuff but it was a time where I could think what I could do different.

What specifically made you step back though? Was it family, beef, fame?

It was a lot. I had friends that were involved with making music with me that I took care of, they end up suing. That’s typically shit that happens when you end up being successful, people get jealous and want to be you, all type of shit. Just not being able to be in the studio with my friends I came in the game with. A lot of shit happened. My engineer, he quit [laughs]. People just counting me out, so it was like aight, it's time to turn up on y’all muthafuckas and show that this is not an accident. This is not an accident that I’m in the position that I am in. I got here on my own and I showed people, before I knew y’all, this is who I was. Now it's just really just showing people, don’t think that I can’t come back and do what I want to do. Even though I said I was gone for a whole year I ain’t never left, I still had music on the radio, I still was getting money, it wasn’t like I wasn’t doing what I was doing.

Don’t ever count me out. All it is, it’s just working. I just have to get back inside it. People trying to count you out and for me that just make me want to turn up and be better than I was. It was so much shit going on, niggas was saying, “Yo he’s not making his own beats, he has a ghost producer.” All this other weirdo shit. I was just like, yo, how many people really got me fucked up right now. When I came in the game it was just me making beats in Inglewood at YG’s house, it wasn’t nobody to help me. So when I did get in high demand, I did go and get help from one of my friends; so-called friend. And it turned out he just want to be famous. But it's not like he didn’t get no money. He wasn’t getting his money took from him or I wasn’t doing like I could’ve and took all of it, I made him over hundreds of thousand of dollars and when you do shit like that for people… it just taught me when you don’t do shit like that for people. People don’t appreciate it like that. They feel like they can do what you do.

Not saying they can’t, but it's hard doing this shit. How many producers do you see come in, have a couple hits and just leave? I think it's safe to say I’ve been here before a lot of producers and I’m still here after a lot of producers. I’m not begging anybody to come to the studio with me. I’m not begging these artists to please can I get a session; I’m not doing that. I’m still being me; people respect me for my ears. It basically just showed me a lot and don’t treat people how you think they should treat you because nine times out of 10 they are not going to treat you like that.

You going to get crazy in the head. Fuck all that you got to get on, do your thang that you think it’s genuine. When you have genuine people, they are going to get rewarded. Everybody who left me in 2014 and 2015 ain’t doing shit with their life right now. They all fuckin’ broke, doing miserable bullshit. We could have been a team, we could have been successful and now they all on bullshit. I’m okay, I’m making beats before these people are with me and after, check the credits. All you have to do is check the credits. When the album comes out, there’s a book in there. Check the credits, and see who name is on that list. Check Kanye’s credits, my name is on his list.

At the same time, I’m going to be DJ Mustard. I'mma still be who I am. I’m going to still have hits before and hits after me. I just did the whole Kid Ink album. 2015 put a toll on me because I never been in this situation before. I’m only 25 years old and going through a lot of shit muthafuckas who’s producing for 30 years never even go through. [People] expect you to just be bulletproof or feeling-proof. My whole thing is in 2015 was to show muthafuckas I’m going to turn up in 2016 and you can’t stop this shit. You can’t stop what God wants to happen. You can’t stop it. If I wasn’t as talented as I thought I am or what everybody thought I was, I wouldn’t even be in this position. How many producers do you know that fell off? We can count them using our hands and our feet. They had one hit and gone.

So in 2016, what do you see yourself doing? Who is the new DJ Mustard?

I just want to tour a lot and play good music. I don’t have a big goal. It’s really just touring a lot and 10 Summers. That’s pretty much the goal for 10 Summers, my album, touring and make good music. Just keep doing what we doing.

Tell me about Ella Mai, the new artist you signed?

I was chilling with my girl and she was looking at her on Instagram. She said, “This chick is kinda good and she sing” but I wasn’t paying no attention. Then I got in the car and I actually checked it out and she was good. So I DM’d her. I asked her, where she was right now and she said “I’m in New York right now.” So I said, I’m finna go to Philly next week, you tryna link? And she said “Alright.” My intention was to just see what it was about, if it was worth trying out. When I got there she was a star, we did like three songs the first night and I brought her down to LA. We took her to a show and then we went to like San Francisco. I did a show, came back, we hit the studio and did like 14 songs then she left and came back. We did some more songs, photo shoot and then we signed her. We talked about what she want in her career and how she want her shit to go. We were on the same page.

Outside of 10 Summers and yourself, what are you working on?

I’m working on everyone’s project. I can’t really say right now but it’s a lot of projects that’s in the works, a lot of people I’m working with that’s going to come out real real soon. I’m just working to have that same run that I had in 2014.

Your energy is great right now. What’s up with Pushaz Ink? I don’t see y’all as visibly together as before.

We all busy you know. YG has 400, I got my 10 Summers, and Ty Dolla doing his Taylor thing. But Ty is about to start his own label. I talked to him the other day, I don’t know if he wanted me to say the name or not. We are just all working. YG is going a different direction with his album so I’m not as involved as I was before. We all have our differences, whether it's me and Ty or me and YG, we ain’t been in the studio and hopefully we all get back in the studio and talk with each other. Not saying we don’t talk to each other, just saying it ain’t how it used to be. One day it will get back [to] how it used to be. Right now we’re just all heading in our own direction with our music.

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